Well hello there everyone! Issac Shikimori here once again with Blood Soaked Bandages my new story! Now before I got too far into the plot line I wanted to get my viewer's opinions on what should happen with Lee. In regards to parings I will have NarutoXHinata however I am at a pass for Lee. Should I have him be with Sakura, Tenten, or maybe a lesser known character? Heck I can even make an original character for Lee. I hope that you guys can get back to me soon in accordance to what I should do. Now without further ado I present to you Chapter 2 of Blood Soaked Bandages!
Chapter Two: Rivals, Friends, and Bowl Cuts!
Iruka walked into his classroom seeing his new student Lee making quite a ruckus in the middle of the room going off about his list of things he needed for the academy which caused the children nearby to all giggle at him. Lee being somewhat of a class clown from taking care of his "little brothers" in the orphanage only took the giggles as a sign of respect as he continued with several poses and more jokes to make the others around him laugh. This made a vein pop out on Iruka's head as he was about to walk up there and quite Lee down however stopped when he caught sight of a young man walking up to the energetic boy.
"AND I LEE OF KONOHA WILL FIGHT TO PROTECT ALL THE FAIR MAIDENS IN THE LAND! FOR I AM AWES-"Was all Lee managed to choke out before the other boy grabbed him by the collar suspending him a few inches off the ground. This boy was none other than Neji Hyuuga a proclaimed prodigy of the Hyuuga clan despite his status as a branch member. Lee only gulped as the Hyuuga tightened his grip starting to make Lee feel uncomfortable as his gaze grew sharp and menacing.
"Listen clown… You can be an idiot all day if you want but not here at the Academy. There are people trying to learn things here and obviously you don't understand the importance of these lessons. One mistake one miscalculation and someone can die and it would all be on you because you decided to be Mr. Funny Guy…. I don't want to have to waste my time with losers like you who are destined by fate to always be losers… just don't distract those who are actually worth something." With that he threw Lee into his chair and turned to Iruka bowing in respect and apologizing stating that he only wanted the distractions to be removed and for class to begin.
Though Iruka didn't appreciate how he went about ending Lee's little episode he did have to admit that he was being disruptive and he couldn't punish Neji for assisting the teacher in controlling the class. With that he sighed to himself as he turned to the chalk board and began drawing diagrams to explain the basics of Chakra. While this was happening Lee was sitting there wide eyed as to what had just happened. No one at the orphanage ever thought he was stupid for making other people happy, he was a bit peculiar yes but stupid? He immediately shook himself out of his thoughts and quickly went back to paying attention to the lesson too scared to cause any more outbreaks which could potentially drag Neji to him.
After a few hours had passed the class was led outside for their taijutsu training which consisted of some basic warm ups as wells as a few basic drills such as punching and kicking. This was everyone's favorite part of the day as they all got the opportunity to go outside and escape from another of Iruka's long boring lectures. One boy in particular was enjoying the work out more than the others. Lee standing in the front row so he could get an excellent view of his teacher immediately started mimicking his movements copying punches and kicks as best as he could. His technique was very sloppy however that could be improved on what really brought Lee to the attention of the Taijutsu instructor was his willingness to learn and work hard even though he was by technicality the dead last of the group.
Due to his prior health issues when he was a child Lee had issues developing chakra which worried the teachers at the academy. Also because of this issue there were obvious moments when the other members of his class would push ahead of him as they were capable of using chakra to increase their movements and strength. It was explained to Lee that one day he might learn to use Chakra to do the same as his comrades but as of now his system was too underdeveloped and difficult to say the least to even hope to mold chakra. Though he was told this time and time again Lee would refuse to believe them or lie down and accept his fate. Whether it was tree jumping exercises or timed runs Lee would always end up last in his class however he always was willing to push farther and farther into his lessons.
Finally the day that everyone in the academy had been dreading in the academy had arrived. The students had trained long all year long and were now asked to evaluate on their skills they had acquired over the year. In ninjutsu the students were given a written test with an hour to complete. This test consisted of fifty questions regarding chakra, chakra control, the basic elements, and an essay on what a kekki genkai was. Within the first twenty minutes Hyuuga Neji walked up to the front of the class and laid his test on Iruka's desk with a smile on his face. He knew much about the subject and was well versed in the lessons Iruka taught with his fellow clan mates to teach him all he needed to know. Truly he was reaping the benefits of being in a clan. Fifteen minutes passed as more people walked up and turned in their papers, one of them being a kind girl who had an interesting fascination with weapons. This girl was Tenten Yugura a girl originating from a civilian family of blacksmiths who joined the academy in order to continue studying about her love for shinobi weaponry.
With thirty seconds left on the clock Iruka looked up from the book he was reading to see that the only student who remained was Lee furiously writing on a sheet of paper. Iruka raised an eyebrow looking back at his clock wondering why Lee was taking so long to finish the basic evaluation test for ninjutsu. Finally the timer rang Iruka called Lee over to him as the young boy happily ran over with his test. To Iruka's surprise the boy had several stacks of paper with him as he turned his test over on the desk.
"Lee what is all of this?" Iruka asked taken aback by the sheer amount of papers Lee had turned in. When he looked up he saw the boy smiling happily as he simply answered "The essay took a while for me to write but I made sure to include everything you ever said in your lectures Iruka sensei!" Lee smiled happily his teeth giving off a glare that could blind a man. As Iruka looked down at his test he was shocked to see that not only had Lee thoroughly answered the question but provided diagrams and examples that could be used. He even took the opportunity to list some disadvantages to several Kekki Genkai's that resided in the village. Obviously this boy had been paying attention however Iruka was just amazed with how he managed to provide such an in depth answer.
"Lee how did you remember all of this…? Even Neji didn't write this much and he has the highest grade in the class!" Iruka stammered continuing through Lee's essay. The boy only chuckled to himself as he gave his teacher his thumbs up sign and shouted. "It is because I have a photographic memory sensei! That is why I am able to pick up on the Taijutsu kata's so easily!" He shouted with enthusiasm. Before Iruka could offer a rebuttal Lee looked over at the clock and noticed it was time for the weapons exam followed by the taijutsu exam.
"Oh I am going to be late I must apologize sensei but I must be heading off now!" He shouted before dashing off to the training grounds outside for the weapons evaluation. Iruka only looked out the window still flabbergasted at how just how talented the young boy was. "If only I can find someone to bring out the talent that boy really has…. Maybe…." Iruka thought to himself as he went back to his desk to look through some files. He was intent on helping Lee achieving his dream of becoming a great ninja one way or another.
"ALRIGHT I MANAGED TO HIT FIFTEEN TARGETS! YOSH I AM AMAZING!" lee shouted in glee as he started to dance around to show his joy for his success. The other students chuckled at his antics as Neji shot him a death glare putting an end to his ridiculous display. Tenten walked over giggling as she held her hand out to Lee. "Lee you know that fifteen is the bear minimum you needed to get to pass the exam right?" She had stated obviously amused by the boy. Being a weapons expert she managed to hit all thirty targets surprising everyone by getting a bulls eye every time. Nobody in the school could come even remotely close to her skill level at throwing weapons.
"Yes of course but I managed to pass did I not Tenten and for that I must celebrate! YOSH!" He shouted before he felt a shove. He looked over and saw that Neji who had walked over by him bumped into him while he whispered into his ear. "For the Taijutsu portion of the test I am going to inflict on you ten times more pain then this." He threatened as he quickly struck one of Lee's pressure points in his side making the boy fall over in pain. Tenten seeing this grumbled a bit at the cruel actions of the quiet hyuuga as she helped Lee off the ground before patting the dirt off of him.
"Don't worry about him Neji is just a jerk and he doesn't know when to stop bullying other people. He comes from a big clan so he has somewhat of a superiority complex and I think he feels a bit challenged because of your declaration to become a great ninja only using Taijutsu." Tenten stated smiling wearily at him. Lee looked over her shoulder at Neji as he walked away from the rest of them before leaning against a tree. "If a fight is what he wants then a fight is what he gets…." Lee thought to himself as he clenched his knuckles tightly.
As the class was lead out into the courtyard Iruka cleared his throat as he walked to the front of his class and smiled. "Listen up! Because our taijutsu coach is on a mission I had to find a substitute to preside over the taijutsu examinations. So then without further ado, your substi-"Iruka suddenly was caught off as a quick blur of green appeared in the field of vision of the students. Immediately the blur took shape into a strange man with a bowl cut and a smile that was so bright it ended up blinding a kid or two.
"I LOVE TEACHING THE CHILDREN OF THIS BEAUTIFUL VILLAGE! THEIR PRECIOUS YOUTH BURNS BRIGHTER THAN A SUNSET AMONGST THE CRASHING WAVES!" Might Guy proclaimed pumping his fist into the air as the scenery behind him changed to a majestic painting of a tidal wave crashing into a cliff with a sunset shining brilliantly in the distance. While this led to several disturbed and confused responses from the children one boy immediately jumped up to the man tackling him.
"THAT HAIR! THOSE MUSCLES! THIS BEAUTIFUL OUTFIT!? ARE YOU GOD!?" Lee yelled out too excited to notice the people behind him either giggling or whispering rude remarks to each other. Guy on the other hand was taken aback. This boy's youthful flames were burning brighter than he had ever seen in his life. In fact they burned brighter than his own which motivated him to out-youth the boy as well as add fuel to this figurative flame and burn his youth sky high.
"Will you two calm down so we can have our exams please?" Iruka yelled out to the both of them causing them both to stand at attention saluting Iruka in unison. "Gomen Iruka-sensei!" both called out in unison. Iruka only facepalmed as he forcibly ripped lee away from the taijutsu master so that they could proceed with the exams. Afterward Iruka pulled out a box containing the names of all his students which would be used to determine the opponents for their exams. After a bunch of normal match ups Lee stepped forward in line and reached into the box grasping hold of a slip of paper. When he pulled it out and looked at it he smiled to himself before screeching "YOSH I have gotten Neji!" The whole class gasped, however Neji only thanked his luck seeing as how he would finally get the chance to beat down the loud fool without being scolded by the Hyuuga elders.
Iruka saw the two boys glaring at one another and sighed to himself knowing all too well that this exam may be the most troublesome in his life. As the exams drew out several simple bouts between children who barely understood the basics of taijutsu took place which usually ended in a slap fight or a wrestling match. Then as the matches dwindled down the final event took place where Neji and Lee would finally meet in combat. Lee trying to look as confident as possible puffed out his chest as he walked up onto the raised platform they would be fighting on. In his head he kept thinking of all the cool things he would say when he would once and for all prove his worth to Neji, however deep inside he was afraid. He was afraid that Neji would really hurt him and that this would be more of a one sided beating then a match.
At the other side of the platform the Hyuuga calmly made his way up the small staircase as he stood there at the other end hands at his sides his eyes closed. This confused Lee as he knew that the Hyuuga were famous for their eyes and here his opponent was standing there eyes closed.
"Hey! Neji aren't you going to open your eyes and get into a stance for the bout?" Lee asked breaking the silent tension in the field. Neji however only chuckled lightly pointing at Lee with his eyes still closed. "You are not worth using the Byakugan on even if it isn't activated. So I will finish you off without the aid of my eyes this way you might possibly stand a chance in coming out of this with all of your limbs working problem you loser." Neji responded coldly as he shifted his weight entering his stance.
Lee felt something inside of him immediately snap as he clenched his fists tightly so that his palms started to bleed. His eyes narrowed as he charged Neji fist pulled back as he attempted to throw a punch at him. Because of this newfound rage Lee was not thinking straight and his already subpar taijutsu was becoming less and less organized and easily countered by the blind Hyuuga. As Lee continued to throw blow after blow at Neji frustrated that no matter what he did the Hyuuga was always at least two steps ahead of him.
"Why can't I hit him!? I just want him to see that I am not useless! I want to prove it to him… I want to prove to myself I am not as useless as what the doctors keep telling me!" He shouted in his mind falling on his face after Neji stepped aside dodging an off-balanced right straight. This sudden realization that he and Neji were leagues away almost brought tears to his eyes as he was about to call it quits right there until he felt someone pat him on the shoulder.
"Huh?" Lee asked as he looked up at the towering figure that was helping him up. This was none other than the examination proctor Might Guy as he kneeled down to his level to talk to him.
"Listen Lee isn't it? The problem is that you are way too angry and cannot focus on fighting him. He is bating your right now and you need to calm down and thoroughly think out your options before attacking. As you can see he keeps dodging your attacks so maybe instead of attacking him you should ground yourself and defend and wait for an opening. Just remain solid Lee… hmmm like a rock or something." He said thinking of how best to explain this.
This little speech had opened the boy's eyes as he realized the error in his fighting. He could only nod at Guy as he forced himself to stand up and take a deep breath trying to calm himself down and approach the battle from another angle. Lee however decided to take it up a step further and removed the cloth belt around his tunic and taking it off revealing his white undershirt. He would bring the cloth belt up to his face and tie it around his head blocking his eyes as well. Seeing this everyone in the crowd was shocked except for one Might Guy who only smiled.
"I AM ROCK LEE OF THE HIDDEN LEAF VILLAGE AND STARTING NOW OUR REAL BATTLE BEGINS!" Lee shouted as he entered the most basic stance taught to all taijutsu students. This stance also known as the "horse riding stance" was a firm stance with both legs about shoulder length apart slightly bent equally distributing his weight. Lee breathed in hard as he aimed his left arm out and held his right at his side which was the basic position for the punching drill the students all practiced every day.
Neji noting that the attacks had stopped coming grew bored of waiting and dashed towards lee palm out ready to strike him in the chest and end this pitiful match. Lee on the other hand held himself rooted to the ground in anticipation for the blow to come, and if like clockwork the moment right before Neji entered his range of motion Lee shifted his right leg forward locking his left knee and punched out hard with his right hand turning his entire body into the punch.
This technique was known simply as the seiken also known as righteous fist or right fist. Neji not expecting his opponent to utilize such a basic move with such precision as the fist collided with Neji's throat. The hyuuga heir stumbled back a bit holding his throat desperately trying to breath as he fell onto the ground. Iruka was just about to call the match himself when he saw Neji finally catch his breath and stand up outraged.
"Alright you little clown I will show you to hurt me!" Neji shouted byakugan fully activated charging at Lee. However Guy stepped in the middle and held his hand up.
"As exam proctor I declare this match over with both Neji Hyuuga and Le-… Rock Lee passing with flying colors." Guy responded happily causing many of the children to run to Lee to congratulate him on his victory even if the winner was not completely decided. Lee taking off the belt was unprepared to be tackled by a flying pair of hair buns as he felt himself colliding with the ground.
"LEE YOU DID IT THAT WAS SO INTENSE!" She squealed happily making Lee feel strange in his chest. After the two stood up Lee finally took notice to the pain that was searing in his hands as he saw that his palms were bleeding and had several small cuts in them. As he sighed wondering if there was any money for bandages at the orphanage he was surprised when he felt someone grasp ahold of his arm and lightly start to wrap it up.
"Guy-sensei?" He asked as he saw the man smiling lightly as he wrapped the boy's arm, and though he didn't get and answer Lee knew that he had taken just a single step farther in his dream as he had demonstrated to this man that he was worth something and could make it as a great ninja. Soon Lee's arms were both covered in tightly bound bandaging as he smiled at the man.
"Lee if you ever need help with Taijutsu just let me know and I will be happy to personally teach you myself." He stated before patting him on the head and walking over to Iruka to give his results. Lee started to tear up sniffling as he tried to keep up the tough guy act around Tenten and the others. One person in particular was looking at him with hatred in his lavender colored eyes for humiliating his name. Lee in response only looked downcast trying not to make eye contact.
After all the children calmed down from their taijutsu exams they all went back to the classroom for Iruka to explain to them their duties as ninja and how in a couple months they will be taking the final exam to be promoted from academy student to Genin. Then entire lecture however was drowned out by Lee's thoughts of what the great Might Guy had promised him and how this could be his chance to become stronger. Silently Lee then decided that no matter what he would train as hard as he could in order to become someone that he felt Guy-sensei would be proud of.
"And with that class is dismissed for the day now you all can return back to your homes! Have a nice day and be safe everyone!" Iruka shouted as the school bell finally rung and the crowds of students started exiting the building. In particular Iruka only sighed seeing the angered Hyuuga walking out the door without the faintest hint of regret for all the hurtful things he said. Notably Neji would be punished severely back home for bringing shame to the Hyuuga name for losing to the dead last in the class. After the students left he was surprised however to see Lee still sitting in his seat deep in thought.
"Lee you know you can go home now right?" Iruka asked confused trying to wake the boy up from whatever daydream he was currently residing in. Lee though proved to be unresponsive to Iruka's questions causing the man to come over and gently shake him.
"Lee why are you still here you know it is time to go home right?" Iruka asked now that the boy was wakened from his daydream. Lee looked over at Iruka then looked back down at the floor again as he tried to properly vocalize what he wished to say.
"Iruka-sensei…in you honest opinion… am I weak? Or a better question to ask is…. am I ninja material?" Lee asked looking to the side. Obviously today had shaken the boy's determination a bit and he was now starved for answers. Iruka knew that if he wasn't careful with what he said then Lee may very well give up on his dreams altogether.
"Lee if you really want to know what I think…. I think that you show great promise and even though you are facing through great adversity you are still one of the greatest ninja I have ever met. There are so many ninja who give up and retire every year or even surrender or betray our village because they do not have the drive to work hard. You on the other hand have something none of them have…. You have inner strength that cannot be extinguished by anything including whatever anyone says. Remember Lee your dream isn't just your dream anymore because now you have Guy on your side and he wants to do everything he can to help you. So now Lee will you just give up and betray everything that Guy sees in you or are you going to stand tall and fight?"
Lee thought long and hard about this taking in everything his teacher was telling him. After a few minutes Lee shot up to his feet and looked at Iruka with a determined glance as he declared loudly. "I AM ROCK LEE A KONOHA SHINOBI AND I WILL GROW STRONGER FOR THE SAKE OF GUY-SENSEI, IRUKA-SENSEI AND ALL MY FRIENDS! SO LOOK OUT WORLD HERE COMES THE STORM!" Lee shouted confidently making Iruka chuckle. Glad to see his student was feeling normal again he decided to take Lee out to eat at his favorite restaurant Ichiraku ramen. After a bowl or two and some interesting stories about the orphanage Iruka walked the boy home and smiled feeling a bit proud of how far he had come along.
"I have great hopes in the future for you… Rock Lee." Iruka stated as he turned away and walked back to his apartment.
Alright everyone that was chapter 2 of Blood soaked bandages! Now I apologize for taking so long to upload this chapter as I have been distracted with many things in my life including work and school and what not. I however love to write and I love this story and hope to pump out more chapters whenever I can! Please review it lets me know that my readers actually like my work and motivates me to write more chapters. With that being said thank you for reading and have a nice day!